The Packaged Triple Option

Well this one might the coolest ones yet. It's a packaged triple option and one can see the number of favorable matchups created, and how tough it stresses the defense (Note what we ran was quite different than the diagrammed play above, that was just the closest image I could find after a quick search. Some of the principles are the same).

One of the real beauties of this play was that it was potentially set up by Foles' TD run earlier in the game. We burned the Redskins on the inside zone read with Foles on the keeper and you have to believe that was in the heads of the defenders. Must respect NVick.

Here's how it looked. It's a two tight end set with Desean and Riley lined up initially on the bottom of the screen. However Desean is going to motion almost like an end around. The DB follows him:

Key thing to note here, the Redskins LBs are reacting and pointing out Desean pre-snap, the DB actually passes him off at the top of the screen and plays in the box. However, Cooper is now left one-on-one at the bottom and that DB is on an island. Pretty nice match-up, no?

Anyway, that part is irrelevant as all the action happens on the top of the screen. As Desean motions back across the formation, the Eagles are setting up a triple option with a speed option going left with Nick and Desean and an inside zone read to McCoy going right. One key on this play is that since we are running a 2 TE set we have 7 OL. As a result, Nick doesn't read the weak-side OLB. Because of the TE we double Orakpo off the snap. Interestingly, Nick is going to read the DB at the top of the screen. The read is highlighted with the yellow arrow. Note at the mesh point, Nick has 3 options. He can hand off to McCoy (blue arrow), he can keep himself (red arrow), or he can pitch back to Desean (purple arrow):

Since the DB he is reading at the top of the screen does not crash and stays put, Nick chooses to hand-off, but you can see below, just what kind of bind this triple option puts the defense in. It looks like the Eagles could have potentially scored on any 3 of these options. The safety and Perry Riley are in no man's land and that DB on the top of the screen is in perfect "pick your position position" for the speed option.

Let's show the end zone look. Here you can see the hole McCoy has thanks to the double team the Eagles have on Orakpo and Golston. Also note the yellow line where Foles is reading the DB out of the screen:

It is also worth noting the position of Perry Riley. Remember, the earlier drive, the Skins got beat at the goalline on a Foles keeper. Riley has to respect that, and as a result, as the play develops he's completely out of position to make a play on McCoy.

Finally, all the while, check out Riley Cooper on the bottom of the screen with a DB on an island. That's a match-up the Eagles have to love against a smaller DB. How much you wanna bet we see the same formation, with the same motion after the bye, except Foles steps back and throws a fade or slant to Cooper?